1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to fishing equipment and, more particularly, to a method used to attach terminal devices to the end of fishing line.
2. Description of Related Art
One problem experienced by fisherman is to make certain that their fishing line is terminated in a manner that will not lead to failure during their attempt to catch a fish. This is even more of a consideration in sportfishing when the targeted species of fish are large and powerful such as for marlin, tuna and sharks. The fishing tackle system is no stronger than the weakest connection, and in most cases, that is the connection made by terminating the fishing line to the terminal tackle known as a swivel or snap clip. FIG. 1 depicts a conventional terminal tackle 1. In particular, the terminal tackle 1 comprises a swivel portion 2 having a snap loop 3 to which a lure having a leader (neither of which are shown) can be releasably coupled. At the other end of the swivel portion 2 is ring 4 that is trapped, but rotatable and slidable, inside a fitting 5. It is around this ring 4 that the fishing line 6 is formed into a knot 7 in order to couple the terminal tackle 1 thereto.
However, the stresses in knots 7 tied in fishing line 6 at the attachment to the terminal tackle 1, in many cases, result in the failure or line breakage at the knot 7. In addition, the slight constant movement, under pressure of the terminal tackle 1, where it is attached at the knot 7 abrades the line 6, further weakening it and fishing line failure results.
One attempt to solve this problem is to attach the fishing line 6 to the terminal tackle 1 without the use of knots. FIG. 2 depicts this configuration. This is accomplished by inserting the fishing line 6 thru a hollow sleeve 8 (e.g., Sevenstrand leader metal sleeves, such NP-31-0062), around the ring 4 on the terminal tackle 1, back thru the hollow sleeve 8 and then with a special tool (e.g., Jinkai crimping tool NP31-3019 or NP-31-6148) squeezing the sleeve 8 tightly around the fishing line 6, forming a secure connection. This eliminates failure from the stresses caused in the fishing line by the knots 7; however it doesn't solve the problem of the slight constant movement, under pressure of the terminal tackle 1 where it is attached to the line 6. The constant movement under pressure from fighting the fish and abrasion from the connection point 9 continues to weaken the fishing line 6 and causes failure at the connection point 9.
Thus there remains a need to solve the problem of a secure, fail-safe attachment method of the fishing line 6 to the terminal tackle 1.
All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.